Fan oscillator with stationed handle control



May 11, 1943.

R. H. JORDAN 2,319,064 FAN OSCILLATOR WITH STATIONED HANDLE CONTROL Filed Nov. so, 1940' 3 Sheets-Sheet 1" ATTORNEY y 11, 1943- R. H. JORDAN- 2,319,064

FAN OSCILLATOR WITH STATIONED HANDLE CONTROL Filed Nov. 30, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEY May 11, 1943. R. .1. JORDAN 2,319,064 FAN OSCILLATORWITH STATIONED HANDLE CONTROL Filed Nov. 30, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 W WZ INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented May 11, 1943 FAN OSCILLATOR WITH STATIONED HANDLE CONTROL Richard H. Jordan, Hamdcn, Conn, assignor to The A. 0. Gilbert Company, Newllaven, Conn,

a corporation of Maryland Application November 30, 1940, Serial No. 367,995

22 Claims.

This invention relates to mechanism for causing selectively to oscillate or to stand still the power unit of an electric fan which may include a motor body pivotally mounted upon its means of support.

It has been customary to provide portable household fans with reduction gearing through which power is transmitted from the fan motor to some form of slowly rotating crank which by linkage connection to a pedestal or other stationary support for the fan causes the pivotally mounted motor body of the fan to oscillate in a familiar way. Such reduction gear mechanism has further been provided with manually shiftable clutch means enabling power drive through the reduction gearing to be set into operation or discontinued at will. In such arrangements however, the clutch itself as well as manually actuated means for shifting it have heretofore been carried on the motor body of the fan and hence This enables the floating anchorage and brake,

together with the manual means for operatively conditioning them, to be supported firmly on stationary structure instead of mounted to be carried by and to travel back and forth with the oscillating fan body and avoids the necessity that the manual conditioning control must be trailed by the hand of the operator in order to be operated while the fan is running and oscillating.

A further object is to include a combined floating anchorage and brake in a group of parts which perform oscillatory movement instead of rotary movement in connection with oscillating the fan. 7

A further object is to mount a complete reduction gear unit exclusive of any clutch or brake parts on the motor body of the fan, and to mount a combined floating anchorage and brake unit exclusive of any reduction gearing parts on the stationary support structure forthe fan, so that these two units may be spaced apart and separately encased and operatively connected together by a simple link extending from. traveling housing for one of said units to a stationary housing for the other of said units.

A further object is to encase the reduction gearing alone within extended portions of the casing walls which house the fan motor.

A further object is to house the combined floating anchorage and check brake unit within a hollow support forming one section of a tilt joint structure so that the fan may be caused to oscil- '10 late equally well with its impeller axis inclined at various angles to the horizontal.

A further object is to provide a manually operated shifter means which may serve at one time to free the floating anchorage and apply a brake to the oscillating power unit, and at another time to arrest the floating anchorage and release the brake.

A still further object is to provide a shifter means for the stated purpose which will remain dependably where it is manually set.

A still further object is to provide an oscillating mechanism in which the aforesaid floating anchorage even while normally arrested is capable of slipping, in response to extra heavy loads which may accidentally oppose attempted oscillation of the fan body, thereby toprevent breakage or impairment of the oscillating mechanism at any point. i

A still further object is to provide a brake which will yieldably arrest and maintain the fan body at any one of a great many slightly separated positions in its path of oscillatory travel.

A general object is to employ parts that are few in number, simple and strong in construction,

' and compactly arranged and housed.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention will appear in great particular from the following'description of illustrative forms of construction having reference to the appended drawings, wherein: v

Fig. 1 is a view showing a reduction gear unit and a floating anchorage and check brake unit connected by an oscillator link and embodying the present improvements, the associated conventional parts of a complete fan and its support structure appearing in broken lines.

Fig. 2 is a View of the oscillator mechanism drawn on a larger scale than Fig. 1 showing the reduction gear unit partially in section on the plane 2-2. in Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is a plan view taken in section on the floating anchorage and check brake unit.

Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the parts of the reduction gear unit.

Fig. 5 is a view taken in section on the plane 5-5 in Fig. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view taken in section on the plane 66 in Fig. 5 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view through the pivot by which the oscillator link is coupled to its floating anchorage.

Fig. 8 is an exploded view showing the parts of the clutch and brake mechanism in perspective.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary plan view of the link connected oscillator parts and is taken in section on the plane 9-9 in Fig. 2.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary plan view taken on the plane Ill-I0 in Fig. 5.

In Fig. 1 the impeller l0, blade guard H, front end of. motor body I2, and pedestal (3 appear in broken lines torepresent the conventional structures of a complete portable type of household electric fan in which is incorporated the improved oscillator mechanism of this invention. According to these improvements, the oscillator mechanism is composed of a reduction gear unit designated l4 as a whole and a combined floating anchorage and checkbrake unit designated as a whole. This reduction gear unit is carried on and oscillates with motor body I2 and is located within extended portions I6 of the walls which house the latter while the floating anchorage including slip. ring 57 and check brake including brake collar 12 are housed within a cup-like casing I! having a hinge. lug secured by a pivot bolt 2| in adjustably tiltable relation to the top forked end 220i. edestal 13.

The reduction gear unit M includes a gear box 23 fastened by means of its integral mounting flange 24 and screws 25 to a rear face of motor body l2. Flange 24 contains the opening 26 through which the motor shaft 21 projects into the interior of box 23. The structure of this box includes a horizontal bearing 3| for the end of shaft 21 and two vertically elongated bearings 28 and 29 depending therefrom and which may be cast integrally therewith. Worm wheel shaft is journaled in bearing 28 and carries fixed thereon above this bearing the worm wheel 36 while at its bottom end below bearing 23 shaft 35 has cut thereon the pinion teeth 31. An oil seal washer 38, preferably of fibrous material, is nested in an annular depression 39 formed in gear box 23 about bearing 28 beneath worm wheel 38.

Pinion 31 is in mesh with a gear 43 which is fixed to a crank structure including plate 44 having the boss 45 fast thereon to serve as a crank pin. Both plate 44 and gear 43 are carried fixedly on the lower end of crank shaft 46 which is journaled in bearing 29 and held upwardly therein by the loose engagement with its circumferential groove 48 of the inner end of a thrust screw 41 having threaded engagement with bearing 29. A cover plate 49 is removably retained on the top of gear box 23 by screws 50 and serves toretain lubricant in gear box 23 at and around worm threads 30 cut onthe motor shaft 27 which turn in mesh with the worm wheel 35. Washer 38 prevents this lubricant from seeping out to the exterior of the gear box through bearing 28. It will be understood that bearing 29 need have no communication with the interior of gear box 23.

Hence all lubricant is fully confined within the gear box with the help of cover plate 49.

A shoulder screw 53 has threaded engagement with crank pin 45 and pivotally connects the latter with the link 55 whose opposite end is pivotally connected by a shoulder screw 55 to slipping ring 51 and separated from the latter by a loose spacer washer 54. Ring 57 is freely rotatable about the pintle 58 which constitutes the upright and sole pivotal support for the motor body of the fan. Pintle 58 is free to turn in a well 59 sunk into the hinge lug 29 of casing i7, this well being counterbored at 60 for seating a ball bearing which is constructed and arranged to withstand axially directed thrust. On the inner race of ball bearing 6| there rests the knurled shoulder 65 of pintle 58 above which this pintle has another shoulder 66 of even larger diameter capped by a hexagonal flange 67. Flange 67 will receive a wrench (not shown) for turning the top threaded end 68 of pintle 58 into firm holding engagement with a downward projecting internally threaded boss 89 rigid on motor body l2. Near its bottom end, pintle 58 is grooved at 10 to loosely receive the inner end of a retaining screw H having threaded engagement with the casing lug and entering groove 19 merely to prevent ac cidental withdrawal of pintle 53 from well 59 without in any way interfering with free tuming of pintle. Pressed fixedly onto the knurled shoulder 55 of pintle 58 is a brake collar '12 whose periphery is notched at l3 for purposes hereinafter explained.

In the above, reference has been made to casing, H which in Figs. 5 and 8 will be obscured to include a rearward projecting portion having notches l! crosswise aligned in its side walls and having internal bosses 18 cut away to form seats 19 into which are tapped the threaded holes 80. The curved wall of the forward end of easing H is provided with a shallow arcuate recess 8! terminating in the stop shoulders 82. Recess SI accommodates a depending projection 83 which is carried rigidly by motor body (2 and sweeps around with the latter between stop shoulders 82 which latter therefore establish positive limits for the degree of oscillatory movement permitted to the motor body.

A spring magazine designated 86 as a whole comprises a block-like body 81 which fits between the bosses l8 and has lateral mounting lugs 88 adapted to rest against and be secured in place on seats 19 by screws 89. The shape of block 81 conforms to the internal bosses which flank it so that this spring magazine is thus positioned immovably within casing I! when bosses '18 are seated as described. Body 81 contains an upper horizontal bore 90 and a lower horizontal bore 9| both of which bores open at both the front and the rear of the block. The upper bore 90 contains the ring arresting ball 92 backed by the clutch spring 93 engaged at its rear end with the slidable thrust plunger 94. Ball 92 may, if desired, be limited in the extent it can project from bore 90 by peaning radially inward the metal bordering the ball occupied end of the bore. The lower bore 9| contains the brake applying ball 98 backed by the spring 99 engaged at its rear end with the slidable thrust plunger I00. Ball 98 may, if desired, be limited in the extent it can project from bore 9| by peaning radially inward'the metal bordering the ball occupied end of the bore.

Slipping ring 57 is provided with the shallow depression 62 in which ball 92 may seat deeply 151 I2, it will be seen that no undue strain can be placed on any part of the oscillation causing transmission if the fan guard II or motor body enough to provide a quite dependable cling opposing turning of ring 51 relative to spring magazine 85 and hence holding this ring stationary with casing ll yieldably but not positively. Thus is provided a definite normal stationed position for ring 51 when push bar I05 is positioned as in Fig. 10 whenever depression 62 arrives in register with ball 62. This predetermines a fixed location for the range of oscillation or are of sweep of the oscillating impeller I in relation to pedestal I3. Slidably guided in the notches 11 of casing IT 'in a manner to be reciprocated longitudinally in crosswise relation to magazine bores 90 and BI at the rear ends thereof is the push bar I in whose forward face there are sunk an upper depression Iii-6 and a lower depression I01. The former provides an inclined cam face I08 while the latter provides an oppositely inclined cam face I09. Projecting forwardly from the lower edge of push bar I05 there is a stop tongue IIO which engages with the interior surface of the side walls of casing I! to limit the extent of longitudinal reciprocative movement permitted to the push bar I05. The latter is of such length that one or the other of its ends always projects laterally from casing I! to an extent not greater than that shown at the left of this casing in Fi 3.

In operation so long as the impeller I0 rotates for fanning air the motor shaft 21 continually drives worm wheel 35 and pinion 31 which latter continually drives the gear 43 at relatively slow speed so that crank pin 45 is continually caused to revolve inside of rearward extension I6 of the walls of the motor casing thereby impelling link 55 to swing about its abutment pivot 56, As link 55 is of fixed length'while the distance between the revolving crank pin and pivot 56 which it serves to couple is constantly varying, either the motor body I2 must oscillate about the axis of its pintle 58 while abutment pivot 56 stands still, or else abutment pivot 56 must itself oscillate while motor body I2 stands still. Either of these performances can be caused depending on the position of the push bar or control key I05. When this bar is positioned as in Fig. 3 the oscillation of brake collar 12 is more strongly 0pposed by the pressure of detent ball 98 thereagainst than is the case with detent ball 92 relative to the detent depression 62 in slipping ring 51 so that the latter oscillates or idles freely between its positions shown in Figs. 3 and 9 while pintle 58 and motor body I2 remain stationary. When the push bar I05'is shifted to its opposite extreme position shown in Fig. the relative forcefulness with which springs 93 and 99 act against their respective detent balls 92 and 98 is reversed whereupon any turning tendency of the slipping ring 51 becomes more strongly opposed than does the turning tendency of the, pintle brake collar I2. Under this condition the anchorage pivot 58 for link 55 will stand still whereupon the motor body I2 will be caused to oscillate.

If the detent depression 52 in the slipping ring 51 does not chance to be in register with detent ball 92 at the instant push bar I05 is shifted into its position in Fig. 10 subsequent oscillation of the slipping collar will almost immediately cause this detent depression to find and be entered by the detent ball whereupon ring 58 will become yieldably arrested to serve as a stationary pivotal anchorage for the end of link 55. As both detent balls provide'yielding rather than positive obstruction to the oscillation of ring 51 and colare susceptible of embodiment in a wide variety I2 is accidentally obstructed while oscillating. Also that when the transmission is not conditioned to cause oscillation, the notches 13 on the periphery of brake collar 5! enable the motor body to be turned to point the impeller aXis in any desired direction wherein it will be yieldably held by detent ball 98.

The advantages of presenting to the hand of the user a stationed handle such as I05 for starting and stopping the oscillation in place of the formerly known handles which ride with the oscillating body of the motor and hence have to be trailed by the hand of the operator for manipulating them, resides in increased safety and greater convenience in use of an oscillating fan embodying these improvements. Itwill also be appreciated that the push bar I05 reliably stays positioned where it is set through the frictional pressure of each spring plunger 94, I00 against the respectively raised and sunken parallel faces of this push bar. I

The principles underlying these improvements of exact mechanical forms and arrangements differing from that herein chosen to illustrate the invention. Accordingly the appended claims will be understood to intend by their terminology all fair and wellknown substitutes and equivalents for the specific elements of mechanism herein disclosed.

I claim:

1. In automatic fan oscillating mechanism, the combination with a support, of a motor unit pivotally mounted on said support, a crank carried by said unit and continually rotated by the motor thereof, connections between said crank and support for converting rotation of said crank into oscillation of said unit including independently oscillating members one of which is fixed to said unit, and a plurality of separately movable detents constructed and arranged respectively to hold said members still one at a time while the other member oscillates thereby to produce or "defeat'automatic oscillation of said unit.

2. In an electric fan, a failing transmission for *at different times optionally causing and discontinuing automatic oscillation of a motor driven I air impeller unit relative to its support, including the combination with said unit and support, of a crank driven by the motor of said unit and riding "therewith relative to said support, an abutment slippably mounted on said support, a coupling device operatively connecting said crank to said abutment; and manually shiftable detent means alternately operative to stay said abutment rela- '-tive to said support or to free said abutment for to-exert a retarding thrust against said unit and movable independently of said detent means in a manner yieldably to resist oscillatory movement of said unit relative to said support.

. 3. In an electric fan, a failing transmission as defined in claim 2, together with a reciprocative handle free fro-m bias in either of two positions and having connections operative to shift the said detent means as defined in said claim by move- I ment from one to the other of said two positions,

and connections between said handle and the said brake operative in one of said handle positions to cause the said brake to exert a yieldable retar-ding thrust against the said unit.

4. In an electric fan, a failing transmission for at different times optionally causing and. discontinuing automatic oscillation of a motor driven air impeller unit relative to its support, including the combination with. said unit and support, of a crank rotated about a traveling axis by the motor of said unit and riding therewith relative to said support, an abutment slippably mounted on said support to turn about an axis parallel to said traveling axis, a coupling device operatively connecting said crank to said abutment, a slippage permitting detent constructed and arranged to exert a yieldable thrust against said abutment in a direction crosswise of said axis of oscillation in a manner to oppose slippage of said abutment relative to said support, and manually shifta-ble means movable crosswise said crosswise direction ofdetent thrust for actuating said detent constructed and arranged thereby alternately to increase and reduce the forcefulness of said thrust for causing or discontinuing automatic oscillation of said fan.

5. In an oscillating fan, the combination with a motor and air impeller unit, of a support on which said unit is pivotally mounted, a motor driven crank carried by and riding with said unit, a motion transmitter connecting said crank with said support in a manner to convert rotary movement of said crank into oscillatory movement of said unit, and mechanism constructed and arranged to disable said transmitter without interferring with said rotary crank movement thereby to permit said unit to idly remain at rest, a brake operative yieldingly to oppose oscillation of said unit when said transmitter is disabled by said mechanism, and a spring arranged to bias said brake against said unit with variable tension, together with manually operable means operative to vary the tension of said spring and thereby the force of said bias.

6. In an oscillating fan, the combination with a combined motor and air impeller unit, of a stationary support on which said unit is pivotally mounted, a hollow housing fixed on said support, a motor driven crank carried by and riding with said unit, a coupling device connecting said crank with said support in a manner to convert rotary movement of said crank into oscillatory movement of said unit, a cooperative slippagepermitting brake within said housing carried in part by said oscillating unit and in part by said support, and a manually shiftable handle operatively related to said brake constructed and arranged to slide into and out of said housing for setting and releasing said brake.

7. In an oscillating electric fan, a failing transmission for at difi'erent times optionally causing and discontinuing automatic oscillation of a motor driven air impeller unit relative to its support, including the combination with said unit and support, of a pivotal joint connecting said unit to said support in a manner defining an axis of oscillation for said unit, a failing abutment constrained to oscillate about said axis relative to said support and emosed with respect to said unit in at least a portion of its axial length, a crank carried by said unit connected to be rotated by said motor about a second axis parallel with the first said axis, a coupling device accessible outside of said unit and thereat manu-' ally actuated in a manner to shift said member back and forth crosswise of the first said axis thereby at times to stay said abutment against oscillation relative to said support or at other times to free said abutment for idling movement relative to said support.

8. An oscillating fan including the combination with a combined motor and impeller unit, of a support structure having a bearing socket, an upright pintle fixed on and depending from said unit and turnable in said socket, an anchor collar freely oscillatable about said pintle, a brake collar fixed to said pintle, a motor driven crank carried by said impeller unit, a coupling rod pivotally connected both to said crank and to said anchor collar, and separately movable detent devices constructed and arranged to oppose oscillation of either of said collars while freely permitting oscillation of the other of said collars.

9. An oscillating fan as defined in claim 8, in which one of the said collars contains a recess in the face thereof and one of the said detent devices cooperative with said recessed collar includes a plunger-like ball adapted to enter said recess and resiliently urged toward said face While guidingly constrained by the said support structure.

10. An oscillating fan as defined in claim 8, in which one of the said collars contains a recess formed in the peripheral face thereof and one of the said detent devices cooperative with said recessed collar includes a ball adapted to enter said recess and resiliently urged in a direction radial to the axis of the said pintle toward said periphery and deriving guiding restraint from the said support structure.

11. An oscillating fan as defined in claim 8, in which the said detent means includes at least one depression in the face of each of the said collars, plunger-like elements adapted to enter said depressions respectively and deriving guiding constraint from the said support structure, separate springs respectively urging said elements toward the said faces, and means to vary the relative tension in said springs.

12. An oscillating fan asdefined in claim 8, in which the said detent means include at least one depression in the face of each of the said collars, plunger-like balls adapted to partly enter said depressions respectively and deriving guiding constraint from the said support structure, separate springs respectively urging said balls toward the said faces, and a single manually movable member constructed and arranged to vary the relative tension in both of said springs thereby to determine which of said balls shall be urged with greater force into the depression in its respective said collar face.

13. Oscillation defeating control mechanism for a fan unit mounted to pivot relative to a stationary support about a vertical axis, including in combination with said fan unit and support, a power crank, a coupling link operated by said crank, an anchorage ring mounted and connected to be oscillated by said link about said axis, a fan unit including a brake collar fixed thereto mounted and connected to be oscillated by said crank about said axis while the oscillatory movement of said anchorage ,ring is stayed, and movement staying means including a plurality of detents mounted to be simultanebear the weight of said brake ously shiftable in respectively opposite directions relative to said ring and to said collar respectively.

14. Oscillation defeating control mechanism as defined in claim 13, in which the said detents are constructed and arranged to move in parallel paths.

15. Oscillation defeating control mechanism as defined in claim 13, in which the said detents are constructed and arranged to move in parallel paths radial to the said axis of oscillation.

16. Oscillation defeating control mechanism as defined in claim 13, together with a manually operable push bar slidable longitudinally in crosswise relation to the said directions of movement of the said detents and constructed and arranged to actuate said detents.

l7. Oscillation defeating control mechanism as defined in claim 13, in which the said brake collar is constructed and arranged to bear the weight of the said fan unit, together with a ball bearing carried by said support and arranged to collar.

18. In fan oscillating mechanism, the combination of a support housing having a horizontally extended portion, a motor unit having a pintle journaled upon a vertical axis in said housing, a slipping ring rotatable about and independently of said pintle, a collar flanking said ring fixed to said pintle within said housing, and a spring detent device removably mounted in said extended portion of the housing including two plunger like elements and means to thrust said elements respectively against said ring and collar.

19. In fan oscillating mechanism, the combination defined in claim 18, in which the said spring detent device includes a single piece double barreled magazine containing the said elements and means.

20. In fan oscillating mechanism, the combination defined in claim 18, in which the said spring detent device includes an elongated block containing two open ended holes extending lengthwise therethrough occupied by and guiding the said elements respectively, and said means includes two springs guided respectively in said holes in a manner to exert resilient thrust on said elements.

21. In fan oscillating mechanism, the combination defined in claim 18, in which the said spring detent device includes an elongated block containing two open ended holes extending lengthwise therethrough occupied by and guiding the said elements respectively, and said means includes two springs guided respectively in said holes in a manner to exert resilient thrust on said elements, together with plungers guided respectively in said holes at the opposite ends of said springs from said elements.

22. In fan oscillating mechanism, the combination defined in claim 18, in which the said spring detent device includes an elongated block containing two open ended holes extending lengthwise therethrough occupied by and guiding the said elements respectively and said means includes two springs guided respectively in said holes in a manner to exert resilient thrust on said elements, together with plungers guided slidably in the respective said holes and projectable beyond ends of the latter at the opposite ends of the said springs from the said elements, and a manually operable push bar slidably mounted in and projecting from the said extended portion of the said housing, said bar having cam surfaces working in engagement with said plungers.

RICHARD H. JORDAN. 

